Pioneer of Woodland baseball team nearly topples Yuba City

If Wednesday's game had gone six innings, Andrew Fuentes would have been a hero.

After all, until that point the Patriots pitcher yielded just three runs to perennial league power Yuba City, and Pioneer owned a two-run lead.

Instead the Pioneer High School baseball team couldn't hold off the host Honkers in a 6-5 loss that stung Patriots coach Craig Marquez.

"On paper, it looks pretty good. Shoot, they only had five hits off Fuentes and we only had two errors," Marquez said.

The second mistake came on a bunt in the seventh inning, a frame in which Yuba City scored three times. Fuentes, who threw five strikeouts in a complete game from the mound, fielded the ball and overthrew the first baseman.

It was a disappointing way to end a contest in which the Patriots (5-7, 2-3 Tri-County Conference) rallied on a Yuba City squad that has won the TCC title in every season of the league's six-year existence.

In the sixth Colton Grant hit a two-out, two run single to take the lead.

Another bases-loaded situation in the seventh secured just one run, since a double play stymied the threat.

"It was a good insurance run at the time, but could've been a bigger inning as well," Marquez said.

The coach decided to leave Fuentes on the mound for the seventh because "he was cruising." Just 10 batters had come to the plate in the previous three innings.

"He was throwing well and was feeling good so I set him back in there," Marquez said. "(With) spring break next week, I'm thinking, extend his pitch count because he's not going to pitch again until (April 21)."

Two pitches later, Yuba City's Devin Pettengill hit an 0-1 curveball for a double. A sacrifice bunt and a single preceded the error that sent Pioneer home defeated.

"We played very good baseball for 18 outs and you need to get 21 in high school to make it a great game," Marquez said.

The Patriots finish their three-game series with the Honkers on Friday at 4:15 p.m at Rotary Field.